By the Pond
by tigereve920
Summary: Two young minds meet at the edge of a pond. [Complete.]
1. Epilogue

Title: By the Pond

Author: tigereve920

Feedback: Send your comments or constructive criticism to missyc@san.rr.com 

Status: Complete

Warning: None

Pairing: Ja-Kal/Nefer-Tina

Category: General

Spoilers: None

Rating: PG

Summary: Two young minds meet at the edge of a pond.

Author's Notes: My take on the past of two mummies. Epilogue was intentionally placed first using my omnipotent author powers. 

Disclaimer: I am in now way affiliated with the cartoon series, "Mummies Alive!" or the DIC Corporation, and any of its affiliates. This fanfic is for entertainment purposes only. This fanfic and its author do not intend to infringe on any copyrights. 

By the Pond

Epilogue

When I was a young, rash boy, I met a girl a few years younger than me at a pond by a nameless village. Her features matched her personality. There was nothing soft about this girl. There was nothing soft about my relationship with her. I have never treated another woman with more equality than the girl at I met by the pond. There has never been a human being more deserving of that respect in my entire existence.

From the first moment we met, we were drawn to each other. Her strong, passionate nature was amazing. We instilled passion in each other. I don't think I would have rose to the station in which I am today without her. 

She had wonderful dreams for the future. She would share them with me each year, and I would share mine with her. We'd critique each other, and strive with all our might to show the other that we would succeed.

Her ambition surpassed my own. One day, I think that ambition led her away from the pond. The year she was to become a woman, she didn't meet me at the pond. That was the year I had been accepted into the royal court of the Pharaoh. My skills in hunting game had reached his ears, and impressed him. 

Even though I never saw the girl again, I swore to critique myself and continue to climb in rank. Perhaps, one day, I would meet the girl again. 


	2. The Beginning

By the Pond

The Beginning

"Hello?" the young boy called out to the stranger throwing rocks into the green pond.

The stranger looked back at him with lively eyes and smiled. "Hello."

"What are you doing?" the boy asked, rhetorically.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" 

He ignored the inference concerning his intelligence, and asked, "Why are you throwing rocks?"

"Because I feel like it," she replied, flatly.

The boy scratched his head. She wasn't like other girls who would grow increasingly nervous by his presence.

The girl directed her lively eyes at the boy, and then stated, with confidence, "When I grow up, I'm going to be part of the Pharaoh's court."

The boy laughed at a picture of such an event. His mother had told him stories of girls that had risen to the Pharaoh's court and how they had become fat in the stomach. "Only loose women become part of the Pharaoh's court," he replied, clearly remembering the words between his mother and her friend.

"What's a 'loose woman?'" the younger girl asked with a frown. "It doesn't sound nice."

"It isn't." The boy grabbed a pebble and threw it across the pond. With three ripples in the water, the pebble was gone.

"Well, I don't care what a 'loose woman' is. I'm not going to be whatever that is!"

The boy looked up at the girl and shrugged. "I am truly going to part of the Pharaoh's court. I'm going to be his lead hunter, when I grow up."

The girl laughed. "I bet you couldn't even hunt a one-footed rabbit."

"If there ever was a one-footed rabbit, I WOULD be able to hunt it!" he spat.

The girl crossed her arms, and glared. "Then, I'm going to be part of the royal charioteers!" 

"'You're just a girl! A girl can't ride the chariots!"

"Then, I'll become a man."

"Impossible!"

"Nothing's impossible."

"Girls are supposed to stay home and take care of the house and children."

The young girl walked up to the boy, and glared at him with intense animosity. The boy shrunk back, unaccustomed to having anyone give him such a gaze.

She only turned away from him in annoyance. The pebble in her hand was thrown into the water. The water wrapped its tentacles around the pebble, and refused to allow it free range over it's surface. She growled in frustration.

"No man will ever tell me what to do," she said to the pond.

The boy eyed the girl in wonderment. He was amazed at the amount of ambition hidden beneath her small body. 

Using her small fingers to push away the strands from her face, she turned to the boy. "I AM going to ride a chariot. And, I'm going to be the best at it."

The boy, riding the wave of courage, also added his declaration to the air. "I shall be the best hunter Egypt as ever seen."

The young girl sat down in the shade of a tree and looked over at the boy. She bit her lip as she assessed him.

The boy boasted, "My father says I'm advanced for my age."

The girl shifted. 

The boy swatted a persistent fly away.

"I'm going to be father's little boy," rang the voice of the young girl. Then, with head lowered, "I know he wanted a boy, but now he's got me."

Unconsciously, the boy walked closer to the girl under the shade of the tree. He sat down next to her, and they both leaned against the tree.

"Maybe, we can both be what we want," he whispered.

Once again, the girl focused on the boy next to her. 

He grew nervous as her relentless gaze continued to pierce his heart. 

"Maybe…" she replied, still keeping her eyes on him. There was something raw about the boy that demanded her attention.

"Of course, if you want to be a charioteer, you'll have to learn to ride a horse first."

"If YOU want to become a hunter, you'll have to know how to track a rabbit first."

The two went off on each other. Each taking turns commenting on what the other would have to accomplish before realizing their dreams. 

"If you want to become a hunter, you'll have to know how to dance the Wapongo," the girl finished with a giggle.

"What's the Wapongo?" the boy questioned. His heart was racing, and he couldn't help buy smile as he laid eyes upon the younger girl.

The girl shrugged. "I don't know. But, it sure sounds funny!"

The two erupted into a fit of laughter. They were intoxicated with each other. Both children were wrapped in euphoria. 

And, then, the girl's father began to call her name.

The girl sprung up, almost like she had been caught doing something wicked. "Father is calling me."

The younger girl enchanted the boy. He couldn't let her leave without the assurance of more time with her. "Next year, we meet here again. Promise?"

The girl brightened. "Promise!" she called out, nodding her head, and ran off to meet her father. 

"By the pond…" 


	3. Flicker

By the Pond

Flicker

Many said the boy was destined for great adventures. He showed striking ability from an early age. At the age of ten, the boy competed with many twice his age. He had exceptional talent. No boy in similar age could handle the bow with as much grace. The power to kill flew through his arm and into the arrow. It was a power that the boy safely guarded. It was a power all adored. 

Many said the girl was destined for great sorrow. Her quick, intelligent mind was ill fitted for the time. Such a mind would only demand greater respect and greater power. The two things a woman could not have. She was beautiful, none could refute the fact, but she would only rise to the station of a housewife. And, even then, there were jealous whispers that would say she would be lucky to even find a man. So, the dreams of the young girl slowly faded. The foul minds of those around her licked their acidic tongues across her soul.

And, so, by the pond they met. 

The boy walked confidently through the trees. No, he walked with the confidence of a man. The young boy had grown up. He had come of age.

The man was certain the passionate girl he had met at the pond so many years ago would show once again. Yet, at the same time, he was afraid she would appear. The liveliness rippling through the girl was slowly being eaten away by the amount of closed doors she faced each day.

Stationing himself on a smooth rock near the edge of the pond, the young man swam through his mind. He needed to sharpen his arrowheads tomorrow, otherwise, the uneven stone would cause his arrow to swagger, reducing his chances of hitting the agile game. In addition, his broken bows would have to be repaired as well. It was careless to have damaged weapons lying around. Carelessness was a bad habit he had struggled with as a child to overcome. Carelessness would not lead him to the top as Nefer-Tina had commented. 

He could not help but smile at the thought of his animated friend. Upon remembering her recent moods, he frowned. The bright fire within her was slowly being extinguished. Had it been any other girl he would not have cared. But, Nefer-Tina was different for all the rest. Her very essence was life. 

And, thus, life appeared at his side.

"Hello, Ja-Kal."

The sweet sound of her voice was the nectar of the gods. And, the young man was growing hungry.

Ja-Kal stood up from the rock, and removed his vision from the plain sight of the green pond. Turning to face the speaker, he examined her. 

My, how she had grown! True, the early period of her transformation from a girl to a woman had not been kind to her. But, upon nearing the end of the metamorphosis, she was developing into fine, young woman. 

"How have you been, my friend?" the young hunter asked, while placing a hand on her shoulder.

Due to her growing womanhood and the effects of the associated hormones, the heat rose in her cheeks and the shoulder where the young man had placed his hand.

"I have been well considering…" Nefer-Tina could not finish her words, and looked down. 

Ja-Kal questioned her with a glance.

Feeling his gaze upon her, and the nature of it, she shook her head. Looking up, she replied, "It's not important. The better question to ask would be of your life."

The young man gave a resigned sigh, and dropped the issue. Her stubborn nature, all too well known to him, would not allow her to continue.

"All has been well."

The dark-haired girl flashed him a wicked smile. "I heard of your last hunt. Surely, Ja-Kal, you could have aligned yourself better with the animal."

Ja-Kal's eyes widened in embarrassment, and he opened his mouth to give her a quick retort. Unfortunately, he was not swift enough.

"If it was not for your quick arm, you would have been injured by the animal." Nefer-Tina shook her head, mocking disdain.

Looking upon the dark-haired girl, he felt his heart beat faster. Every action and word that came from her slim body and lips was alive with passion, and this excited him. 

"How go your lessons?" Ja-Kal asked, genuine concern mixed with a chance to leave, what he considered, an unpleasant topic.

He noticed dimness growing in her eyes. "They have been cancelled. Mother says it is not proper for a young lady to ride horses."

"Oh…"

"She said it was bad enough that father allowed me to entertain foolish ideas when I was young, but, now, as a young lady, it was time to learn more about the care of the house. Mother will not allow her daughter to be ill-prepared." With the last sentence from her lips, Nefer-Tina closed her eyes and clenched her fists in mental anguish.

Seeing the drastic change in his friend's disposition, he felt compelled to bring back the forbidden topic. "Nefer-Tina, my friend, please, you must tell me of your troubles. You have advised me all these years. Let me help you. There must a solution to your dilemma!"

His heart quickened, and the fire grew in his veins. Oh, how he cared for this girl!

She did not respond. Instead, she cast her gaze upon the algae-green pond.

He began once again, closing the distance between the two, "Nef--" 

"They are going to marry me off to some old man named Paimu! He's a small, widowed farmer with five children. The oldest son is almost my age!" By the end of her declaration, she was screaming in rage. Rage at her parents, and rage at the young man before her.

She was angry at the world. She would not be allowed to become a charioteer. Her future would consist of running a household of five, being forced to live at the whims of the old man and his elder son. It was not a rare case for the eldest son of a previous wife to harass the new wife. How could she possibly live by such subservient conditions? She would rather kill herself. But, no, suicide was a coward's way. And, she was no coward.

The passionate heat emanating from the two bodies melted the proverbial ice cap that had been established on their relationship. 

Nefer-Tina felt herself being swiftly turned around, and Ja-Kal crushed his lips upon hers. 

Ja-Kal could no longer hold down the strong desires buried within. Giving into his desires, he licked at the sweet nectar within her mouth. Such show of venerability, coupled with her emotional words and actions, drove him wild. She had broken through the floodgates of his heart.

Nefer-Tina did not know if it was desperation at her last chance at a favorable future, where she could enjoy true pleasure with a man she knew and respected, or true emotions hidden in her heart. At this moment, she didn't care. 

But, Ja-Kal did. 

Regaining his senses, he broke away from the hot body in his arms.

Both regarded each other for a moment, their chests rapidly rising and lowering for air.

"I'm sorry," Ja-Kal lamented, turning away from his friend in shame. 

Nefer-Tina brushed a few strands of loose hair from her face, blushing from the experience of her first stolen kiss. "No, please, don't be sorry."

But, he could not shake the deep sense of shame from his mind. He had taken advantage of her. She was in an emotional, desperate state, and he had practically forced himself onto her!

"Nothing can become of this..." 

"I know," she replied, soberly understanding the times in which she lived. Class differences and traditional spheres would prevent her, if they chose to be together, from fulfilling her dream.

Nefer-Tina raised her hand, and dared to touch the shoulder of young man in front of her, "You must go on to attain your dream, Ja-Kal."

"As must you. Promise me, Nefer-Tina, that you will continue to train."

She lowered her head, and replied, sorrow laced through her words, "I cannot promise that. You know I can't."

Grabbing her shoulders, he spoke to her with a strained voice, "What happened to that passionate girl I met by the pond when we were younger? What happened to her ambition and confidence? You said you were going to become a royal charioteer." Ja-Kal dropped his hands from her shoulders, and continued, "How can you achieve your dream, one that you were so adamant about, with this foreign attitude?"

"I…" Her voice was caught in the back of her throat. 

"If there is anyone here who can accomplish their dream, it is you."

She sprung on him with a tight embrace, whispering into his ear, "Thank you, Ja-Kal, for believing in me."

Ja-Kal smiled at his dear friend. Her wild changes in emotions would never cease to amaze him.

Nefer-Tina blushed at the proximity she was to Ja-Kal, and eased away. Taking a moment to renew her knowledge with her surroundings, she suddenly remembered the time. "It's late. I must go…"

"Be safe, my friend," Ja-Kal replied, resisting the terribly strong urges within his body, urging him to grab the girl and claim her.

Nefer-Tina nodded with a smile, and walked away from the pond. Before she had completely disappeared from his sight, she turned, and regarded the young man for another moment. Smiling, she skipped away, with a newfound sense of confidence in her life, the sensation of the stolen kiss still lingering on her lips.


	4. I'll Fly Away

By the Pond

I'll Fly Away

Snap.

He turned, but there was no one there to answer his gaze. 

The day was growing old, and his passionate friend had not arrived. But, could he still consider the lovely creature, the one he had tightly held in his arms, a friend? The boundary had become blurred since their last encounter. He remembered, with a faint smile, the warmth he had felt with her in his arms. Everything had felt so right, yet, so utterly wrong.

And, he was getting that exact same feeling once again. 

His heart skipped a beat.

Perhaps, she would not show? What if he had scared her? 

He sat down and leaned against a rock.

By Ra, what if she believed him to be a rapist?

Ja-Kal threw his head back in anguish, running a hand through his hair.

His mind flew back to the last image he had of Nefer-Tina. She had smiled at him--not a fake, uneasy one, but a genuine smile. 

It was the same smile she had given him throughout their younger years. Yes, the ambition had been revived. 

From his first encounter with the fiery creature, he had known within the depths of his being that she was destined for greater things. His stomach tightened just by the mere thought of her.

Ja-Kal saw a bird out of the corner of his eye, and turned to observe it. The insipid bird contrasted sharply with the luminous sky. His monotonous features melted into a sly smile. The sky was clearly making way for an overdue spring rain.

There was something about standing in a spring shower that made his flesh tingle. The rain was a sweet embrace. Nefer-Tina had smelled like spring rain. 

He vehemently shook his head. No, he had to forget about even the remote possibility of a relationship with the young woman. Even if she did manage to escape her future marriage, being the resourceful being that she is, they both had their futures to go on to. Perhaps, one day they would be free of their duties and would be able to consider a future together, but, now, it was not the time.

By Ra, how could a single person make his emotions and logic blur together? Half of himself was shouting at him to find Nefer-Tina and claim her. Perhaps if her parents saw what a bright, young man he was, they would reconsider sending her off to the old goat? Ja-Kal shook his head in defeat. Logic had won this argument. What would truly happen if he did go to her family would not be to his benefit. Her parents would see the opportunity and hold an auction for their precious jewel. Frankly, the occupation of a hunter did not have the assets one would require in an auction--he only had one cow.

Ja-Kal tightened his fists and clenched his teeth in frustration. 

"I vow to become the greatest hunter the people of Ra have ever seen!" he proclaimed to the air, throwing a fist at the sky. 

If Nefer-Tina could not achieve the future she desired, then he would work twice as hard for both of them. Nothing would stand in his way to become an elite huntsman.

Picking up the smoothest rock he could find, he threw it across the pond. Ja-Kal could always find peace by applying himself to a task, no matter the magnitude.

The rock sailed through the air before sliding across the membranous surface of the pond. 

It reached the other side of the pond.

End.

[Endgame: "Uh… what just happened?!" Well, I'll tell you my friend: metaphors up the wazoo! Thank you, everyone! (Especially Julie for helping the gears turn in my head!) I'm glad you enjoyed my little gander at Ja-Kal and Nefer-Tina's past.]


End file.
